GAINESVILLE — New Florida Gators quarterback Aaron Philo’s first high school start was a four-interception flop following an offseason of build-up.
“Everyone was like, ‘I don’t know about this guy?’” his former coach Jon Richt said, recalling fan sentiment.
Rather than getting rattled, Philo went to work. The 16-year-old watched film, corrected his mistakes and threw five touchdowns the following week.
The rest is Georgia high school football history.
Florida hopes Philo’s maturity, resilience and talent are a sign of things to come from the Gators’ quarterback of the future.
Richt, Philo’s offensive coordinator at Prince Avenue Christian in Athens, is confident his former pupil is prepared to spearhead new coach Jon Sumrall’s turnaround at Florida.